July 30th and we are in Iowa!

Tim: 

Day thirteen is behind us. We had a partly cloudy day, with upper 70’s and lower 80’s and the wind a little lighter. I started in Cambridge, Illinois after a good night’s sleep at a pleasant little campground and headed west towards Iowa. I was joined by Marcia for a ride to finish up the morning and stop for lunch. I had a nice downhill into the Mississippi River valley and over the bridge into Iowa. Feels like the first big milestone. I am happy to get there safe and sound. 

I continued through Muscatine, following our own route now off the bike maps, where I had eleven miles of pretty chunky gravel which was not that fun and a little hard on Tutsi. Once I got off that I actually picked up part of the RAGBRI course from Friday and rode into Iowa City and through to Tiffin where I met Marcia. We then backtracked and stayed in a lovely bed and breakfast in Iowa City. A nice treat and a good sleep after a fortuitous find of Mosley’s Barbecue where we enjoyed a delicious pulled pork dinner. So I think it’s 1356 miles of riding so far, and I did 100 miles again today. I’m excited to get to Council Bluffs, Iowa and get some rest, see my family, and meet up with my children who are flying out to see us there. Heading west….

Marcia:

I love bed and breakfasts with big soft beds and clean real bathrooms! Cities are not my thing, but Iowa City is a beautiful college town. I met several people while waiting for Tim to end his day at a gas station in Tiffin. They saw me with my car loaded and bike on the back and assumed we were part of the RAGBRI (Register’s Annual Bike Ride across Iowa) which is a very big deal out here. A giant party of cyclists riding across the entire state every year in a rolling party. Bikers recognize other bikers doing the same crazy thing, and all are instant friends. “Be safe!”…is the way all cyclists say goodbye after sharing stories and parting ways. We met these two gentlemen in a coffee shop this morning as they saw Tim’s attire, assumed we were involved in that event, and were curious about who we are, where we come from, where we are headed. It got them to reminiscing about their own youthful adventures, and when they offered to take our picture, we naturally had to take theirs. I saw these buffalo in a town called Buffalo Prairie just before we crossed into Iowa and they begged me to take their picture too.

Tim:

Day 14 is complete...122 miles ridden. I started out on a nice cool morning Tiffin and had 71 miles on highway 6 with nice rolling terrain through central Iowa. I diverted off on paved back roads and then did about 40 miles on the Chichaqua Valley Trail where I was joined for 20 miles of it with Marcia, who did an awesome job. So I felt great, the weather is comfortable and the body is doing well.  




The highlight of the day was catching up with coach Ellingson in Indianola at Simpson College where I ran cross country and track under him. It was great to see him after 20 plus years, give him a hug, and thank him for all he did for me. He is a true inspiration. 


After that we stayed at the Patterson abode in Polk City. I ran with Scott Patterson at Simpson, and even though Scott was out of town on business, his wife, Julie and his daughters were very gracious to open their home and thankfully their shower to us. We left with a bag full of bagels and gatorades to continue west to Council Bluffs, my hometown. I'm doing quite well, Marcia and I are hanging in there and looking forward to some rest and recovery on Tuesday. 

Friday, July 27th

Friday, July 27th

Tim:  

Day 11 was an uneventful 110 mile ride, a sunny windy day transitioning from Indiana into Illinois. Kind of like riding bike paths, a lot of back farm roads, little traffic, with smooth surfaces. I saw a lot of kestrels. I am pleased that the body doesn’t feel the fatigue as it is settling in to its new normal. Heading west, I’m getting excited to enter Iowa, my home state, and continue this adventure. Marcia and I are doing well. We have our campsite roles with sleep getting better these last few days at quieter campgrounds with cicadas singing us lullabies to sleep. It was a pleasure riding into Kempton, Illinois with Marcia for our morning lunch stop.

Marcia:

Well, I’m not sure I’d agree that cicadas sing lullabies…there was a dead one on our makeshift picnic table a couple of nights ago and they are rather large hideous things. They start up as we are preparing our dinner and with decibels rising until we are settling down to sleep. I keep forgetting to dig out the earplugs from the depths of our tightly and efficiently packed car. Appreciating the wildlife up close has been fun though. Hawks flying low over cornfields, cattle braying in the fields, osprey carrying a meal off to a nest, woodpeckers, herons in the rivers, and I enjoyed a Baltimore oriole showing off in a sycamore tree as I waited for Tim’s morning water replenishment rendezvous. Owls at night have been amazing to listen to, and way on back at Lake Erie I had a face to face (well, nearly empty dumpster peek to frightened little eyes) encounter with a tiny raccoon who was way more adorable than I thought those creatures could be. At the Salomonie River State Park we looked into the water at the marina and saw a swirling mass of very large fish lifting their gaping mouths up to us in the weirdest greedy way that would have inspired Steven King to new heights of fiction had he seen it. Lets not tell him. 

Yesterday when Tim met me at the designated spot (by a cornfield, naturally) I was parked and saw him ride up making a loud and rather frightening noise. Concerned that he was hurt I jumped out of the car, and there he was, climbing off the bike, pulling out his earbuds (music), singing “Alice’s Restaurant” at the top of his lungs. He’s as happy as can be, and says the music helps him through the afternoon headwinds.

When a friend wondered how we could camp every night instead of staying in hotels, it got me thinking that it’s not just that it’s less expensive, which of course it is. There’s something about laying your head on the ground at night, trusting that you’ll be safe, and having faith in the goodness of people. One of those was a very interesting gentleman we met at the Bayou Bay Campground last night. He’s been running the place for 40 or more years, and has a sign that says “Sharon and Fred” at his counter in the camp store. Sharon is clearly no longer among us, and Fred carries on with a kind and simple spirit that is as endearing as it is contagious. I kept thinking how much my Dad would have loved to sit and chat with this man, and I loved watching Tim and Fred talk about the campsite, his mechanical engineering degree, how he worked as an electrician for Caterpillar, and his life in general.

The place is hard to describe. I had my doubts when I pulled in, as it is entirely cluttered with old machinery and rusted parts and pieces of a long life lived with Fred’s “toys,” as he described them. He said the campsites usually go for $30 a night, but when someone is ambitious enough to bike across the country, he only charges $15. He set us up in his own front yard (which was kind of a cluttered mess) and then we went to the showers…a pleasant surprise of a beautiful new tiled place, the best we’ve enjoyed yet. Out back was a gorgeous, clean swimming pool which we had all to ourselves. A wonderful way to end the day for us both. 

I was able to ride yesterday and today with Tim for a couple of good stretches. If he wasn’t so fast (I can’t get as far ahead of him as I’d like) I’d get more miles in, but I’ll take what I can get. The headwind doesn’t seem to bother him, but to me it feels like a great big hand on my forehead pushing me backward. So he has me tuck in behind him as close as I dare and take advantage of the tunnel his draft makes. Fun. 

The roads are like a board game grid…one mile west, one mile north, one mile west again, one mile south around the cornfields. Tim has mentioned that he’d rather not waste energy going north or south, but there really isn’t any choice. And the occasional tail wind is a gift. He rode 112 miles today and is going strong. He's amazing.

Tomorrow is another day…and the adventure continues…

Indiana and a time change....

Day 10...

Tim:  (Voicemail from the road this morning, just after texting this picture to me...)

Day nine started with a morning ride along the Maumee River, and then through the back farm roads of Ohio. The day was fairly uneventful, with a lot of small farm towns followed by a restless night of camping with some intruders after dark on our tent site requiring us to call the campground security to ensure our safety and privacy. Unsettling for sure, but we finally were able to get some sleep at a much later hour than we would have liked. Total miles traveled at 105, and then passed into Indiana. Tim zone change today. Looking forward to continuing this journey.

Marcia:  I am discovering the joys of the public library that I never really appreciated before...cold delicious water fountains where you can refill all your bottles...outlets next to carrels where you can plug in all the necessities for safe travel (phone, portable batteries for charging phones, computers). We are in Renssalear, Indiana today, having traveled from Salamonie Lake and Reservoir where we camped last night. It was gorgeous there (bunny rabbits, bluebirds, waking to lots of beautiful birdsong) and we even got to swim some nice long lap like lengths (me) and a cooling off to rest swim (Tim). And a hot shower after primitive camping the night before where the best he got was a dunk in a muddy river. Oh those hot showers after a long and sweaty day are such an amazing thing! Someone should write a song about them.

Tim is still doing great, going strong, and challenging my cooking skills to supply him with enough calories so he doesn't disappear. I rode a nice long stretch with him today on a lovely bike path in farm country. It's all corn fields and soybeans here...I actually jumped out of the car at one point and ran to this field to confirm what I thought it was...yup...soybeans.

The fields, and therefore the roads, are in grids of rectangles and squares, and being spatially challenged (which one of these things is my left hand anyway? And if I'm looking at the map right side up, is the turn to the left or the right??)...I found myself stopped at a corner (not for the first time but that's about 10-20 other stories so far) pondering just which way to go and find where I had promised Tim to meet him for lunch and water replenishment.  A red van pulled up gently beside me and a lovely grandmother with her four grandchildren rolled down the windows and waved. She is a Warm Showers Host and invited me to stop at her farm just up the way a couple of turns, and wouldn't we like to spend the night? It was too early for that today (although I just wanted to fall into her arms and say Yes! Yes!) as we still have miles to go before we sleep. But she invited me in to wait for Tim and we made our sandwiches there on her kitchen table with the little fellas telling us all about farming, football (their uncle was drafted to play for Purdue!) and their Dad's motorcycle repair business. She fed us just picked sweet corn on the cob (oh my...so good!) and cold ice cream (it's mighty hot out there today) with fresh berries. She loves hosting cyclists and showed us her book of all her guests so far. She took our picture to add to it, so we took this one in return....

We will camp here in Renssalear tonight and look forward to tomorrow which will surely bring new experiences and adventures.

Napoleon, Ohio, July 23rd

Marcia: Finally...I am a few miles ahead of Tim and have found a lovely library in a sweet little Ohio town/city. We have been so tired come evening, that even if we can find internet we have trouble putting coherent thoughts together. Well, I do anyway. Tim is going strong, amazing athlete that he is. When he arrived at our adorable little cottage on Lake Erie at Firefly Campground yesterday afternoon (our first anniversary) he was carrying a bouquet of flowers which he had been keeping in one hand and steering the bike with the other for over four miles in the rain. I picked a good one!

I'll tuck in some pictures here from the road...although I'm already forgetting the name of towns where they were taken. Our first night in a hotel a few days back when Tim was riding on the Erie Canalway we took a walk downtown and came upon a jazz band concert. 

Here is an approximation of our route. Wow...when I look at where we are today it seems mighty short so far compared to how long it has felt. Ok...I'll try not to think too far ahead! One day at a time...

We have a great end of day and morning routine well established. I set up camp while he is coming in at the end of the day. We cook together, and in the morning he makes the essential coffee, while I pack up our little tent and he loads up all the rest. And off we go for the day's adventures. 

Lake Ontario...this picture does not do justice to its vast and stunning beauty.

Hand cut hay stacks in Amish country. 

Our favorite campsite so far....

Tim enjoying the Erie Canal bike path...a wonderful ride. Someone should make a bike path all the way across the country. Really. Someone should.

After a particularly tough day of riding on our Anniversary eve...a cup of wine in his hand he sat down and said "I should probably get up, but I'm not sure how..."

This little cottage was just rustic and fun, and the chair lined view of the beach below was lovely.

This is completely out of order here, but it is us at Niagra Falls on an incredibly hot hot day with a bazillion other people. But when you are in the vicinity, you just have to do it, you know?

Tim: (Typed up from his voice memos as he rides along....) Day 6 included three states, starting in New York, riding through the vineyards as far as the eye can see of Pennsylvania, and into Ohio. I think I did 100 miles of nice rolling terrain, feeling good. Off to the urban jungle of Cleveland tomorrow.

Day seven...call it Cleveland. The Cleveland woes. Started out by having to go about four miles out of the way to get back on the route. Then headed into the suburbs of Cleveland along lake Erie. Beautiful gated communities with unfortunately street detours that added to the mileage, with construction, and into Cleveland proper. This included more detours, tricky maps to follow, and finally meeting up with my wife at Lakewood Park right on Lake Erie. I was so relieved to see her after 74 miles of riding before lunch. I then rode along through the western end of Cleveland to a beautiful little purple cottage at Firefly campground to celebrate our one year anniversary with a lovely dinner at a French restaurant in Vermilion. 

Marcia: All is well... we are both doing great...I stopped at a car dealership this morning to figure out a few issues with my little Honda. They helped me right out and got me back on the road free of charge. Ohio folks are some of the nicest people we've met so far, which makes the little snags along the way so much easier to get around. We'll write more another day when the coverage is good. Missing our family and friends....we send our love to all.

Day 3 and on....

The adventure continues…

Tim:  Here we are on day 3…total travel today 108 miles. It was a day of lessons learned. It started out with me taking the wrong turn coming out of the campground not paying attention to the map and going six miles the wrong way.  My trusty companion collected me and dropped me off where I should have been. After that the day was quite splendid with 70 degrees, sunny, rolling terrain as I left the mountains of the Adirondacks. I had the best road thus far…Moose River Road for about 10 miles of smooth, rolling, tree lined terrain along the river. I also had the worst conditions thus far on Highway 294 which, although paved, would make a VT class four road be proud. Tonight we are staying in Fulton, NY on a campsite next to a small lake.

Marcia: So, this is how Tim’s mind works while out on the road for a day, after a day, after another day. He says much of the time his mind is quiet and meditative, but sometimes he gets a rambling thought and records it for me. Here’s an example of Tim’s rambling voice memo while cruising along through Amish country…

“So if we were making a movie of this bike trip, it would be starring Tim Shea, co-starring Marcia Clark, with best supporting actor would be Tutsi (my bike), best supporting actress would be…hmm…I can’t remember the name of Marcia’s bike. The support crew would be Marcia’s car, and Mavis (our GPS system) would be on navigation, music would be provided by Spotify through Tim’s bluetooth headphones, and it would be produced by Tim Shea and directed by Marcia Clark. The title would be “Tim and Marcia’s Tour de America.” (Credit the title to Nathan.)” 

Tim is clearly so happy on this ride, and it is a blessing to be a part of his inspiring effort. He is getting stronger every day and I am often having a hard time keeping up with him when I drive the route he is riding. If I stop to dip my toes in Lake Erie, he’s coming up behind me before I know it. When I park and bike back to him and we ride together for awhile, it is a challenge to bike back to the car and drive to catch up with him at our next rendezvous point. He’s kind of amazing, cruising along at 15-20 mph when the road allows. 

Amish country through upstate NY was beautiful with orchards and farm stands and hand cut hay stacks. I stopped at one farm where there was a mom with four children selling vegetables from a gorgeous handcrafted stand in their front yard. The little boy in his straw hat smiled and waved when I wiggled my fingers at him. I must be a curiosity with my car packed to the gills and the bike on the back dressed in a tank top and shorts while his mother is in a full length black dress and a white cap on her head in 92 degree heat and blistering sun. Beautiful horse in the breezeway of an old barn, and goats and chickens nearby. A bag of assorted fresh vegetables cost me $3.50. When I thought of what I would pay for the same at the Montpelier Farmer’s Market, I felt a wave of guilt, but we have been enjoying the bounty of these humble people for several nights at our campsites.

Tim: Day four started out by waking up to a beautiful sunrise on a misty lake and a ride through vineyards and peach orchards, meeting Marcia on Sodus Point for a beautiful ride along the shores of Lake Ontario. Marcia had met a wonderful older gentleman walking his dog by the marina and when I came along he flagged me down, took my picture, and pointed towards San Francisco. I then rode 50 miles along the Erie Canalway Bike Path which was stunning, passing  boats, rafters, so beautiful I called Marcia and said “you have to do this”. She parked the car and came out for her second ride of the day. We made it back to our first hotel of the trip, which was a treat, with five minutes to spare before I had to join a conference call for work. I rode 110 miles today with a total of 413 miles completed thus far. The next day included another 50 miles along the Erie Canal where Marcia joined me to finish it. We rode into Lockport, where the locks are a stunning achievement of human ingenuity and the power of water. After a stop at a cafe I headed on to Niagra Falls where we had a nice break and lunch with tens of thousands of other people. Lake Erie State Park for camping tonight. I covered 101 miles today, and we are doing well.

Marcia: Today is our 1st Anniversary. We woke up at Willow Tree Campground to a misty rain. A quick cup of coffee from our tiny camp stove and Tim headed off for Cleveland, Ohio. We have the camp tear down and car pack up figured out to an efficient few minutes, and I headed off on the super highways to rendezvous in West Cleveland instead of trying to follow his slower route. I parked the car and enjoyed beautiful Lakewood Park on the shores of Lake Erie. When I tried to start the car again it was dead. Instead of panicking (my usual go to), I prayed for an angel and started looking around. Two wonderful guys pulled up next to me, and when they heard my plight, they jump started my car and sent me off to a nearby Automaster store. The battery and alternator checked out as ok, so back I went to meet Tim in the park for lunch. I was hoping to find a church to attend this morning, and when I got back to the park there were two churches having services right in front of me. What a treat. When Tim finally made it to me from Cleveland we headed off to Firefly Campground where I was lucky enough to secure a tiny (purple!) cabin for the night right on the shore of Lake Erie. Rustic and wonderful. We had a fabulous meal at a wonderful French restaurant in Vermilion, Ohio, and when our gourmet meal was set in front of us we both started laughing as we thought of the difference between what we were about to eat and our campfire meals. From the ridiculous to the sublime, but all good. 

Tim's response to my asking if he wanted to add any details about his ride through Cleveland: "No. I'm glad it's behind us."

Internet is very spotty, and I can't seem to get our pictures to load tonight...will try to find a way to do that soon. We are well, happy, and having such a wonderful time together. Tomorrow will bring us to a remote campsite in mid-western Ohio. Here's praying that the car holds up until we can get it checked over.

Two Days Out

Tim: Well, the first day is in the books, and we made it to New York after a tearful sendoff with my kids. We left the house at 6:30 am, with a quick stop at Red Hen for a lovely cinnamon bun, then Huntington gorge and on to Vergennes for lunch at 3 Squares Cafe. The backroads of Vermont were lovely rolling terrain, and I highly recommend them for anyone who wants to go for a beautiful bike ride. I headed along Lake Champlain in Vermont and crossed over into New York an on down to Ticonderoga. I had a four and a half mile climb up route 74 into the Adirondacks where I happily met Marcia to replenish my water, as it was 92 degrees with high humidity. After that I earned a mile and a half downhill into Paradox, New York.


Second day started out in a cool slight drizzle of rain on rolling terrain. I rode by beautiful and picturesque Eagle Lake. The day included four significant climbs followed by refreshing downhills. Marcia and I are connecting several times throughout the day which uplifts me and provides essential water replenishment. We stopped at Blue Mountain Lake for a lunch and rest break. Today ended in Old Forge, New York. I am feeling well and looking forward to continuing this adventure. All told I have completed 194 miles of 3800...only 3606 to go!




Marcia: We left yesterday (really?...we had to stop and think about that as it seems like we've been on the road for days..) and headed to Ticonderoga via Richmond, Monkton, Vergennes, and into NY state at Crown Point. We met  Hannah at Red Hen for a pastry and a send-off. Huntington Gorge was stunning, and a first for both of us, so I stopped and waited until Tim caught up with me (which took him approximately 15 minutes and he hadn't even broken a sweat!) A quick view and a picture and we were back on the road. Vermont is so lovely I was beginning to wonder why we were leaving it at all. Lunch with Abbie and Ken in Vergennes and back on the road again. Our first night just west of Ticonderoga was deer fly camping in high heat and humidity... practice for the days to come. Today brought us into the Adirondacks and past a continuous offering of gorgeous lakes and small hamlets. Tim met me for some much needed calories and water refills, and we set up camp tonight in Old Forge. Specific directions are given here to keep the bears from bothering campers, which is only slightly troubling, as we have one in our backyard at home too. A great start to our big adventure...Tim did 90 miles yesterday and 104 miles today. Me, leapfrogging along and biking back to meet him and ride together when the going looks good, did only 6 miles the first day and 20 something today. Looking forward to what tomorrow brings!

First Post

Welcome to my blog site where I will document my epic bike ride from Berlin, VT to San Francisco. CA. The idea of cycling across the country came to me last year after I finished an ironman triathlon and found myself looking for my next physical and mental challenge. My goal is to accomplish the approximately 3,800 miles in seven weeks by riding an average of 100 miles each day from Vermont to Colorado and then around 85 miles a day while climbing the mountains from the Rockies through the Sierra Nevada’s. 

After discussing this with my wife and children and receiving their blessing, the planning began and details started to come to fruition. My wife Marcia will be accompanying me on this trip by car, her role to include that of porter, cook, camp site coordinator for set up and take down, biking partner at the beginning or end of each day, and emotional support for me. We will be leaving on July 16^th and ideally arriving in San Francisco by the end of August (seven weeks), traveling through twelve states in a generally central United States route.

I appreciate the support of National Life Group affording me this opportunity with the ability to work on the road. In particular I want to thank Al Foice and Justin Daniels for approving this flexible work schedule and my team of Dawn Rivers and Katy Tyner for picking up my slack. I will try to update this blog every few days as my adventure unfolds and my energy level allows. As for now, training and completing packing with six days to go...